Act I: GenerosityScene I: Enter Hope and Lightning [Production page fades to black, and black zooms out onto the street with black being a crack. Zoom back onto Lightning walking down the dilapidated street.] Narrator(male): Look upon this city of grime and cracked streets and remember the desolation that grew inside its walls. It once was the grandest of cities, a gorgeous glorious city, but unfortunately, unrest and displeasure were growing. People didn’t want to share and help others, and thinking only of themselves, they rioted and overthrew the government, which encouraged sharing, and that they felt were cheating them. But they did not foresee the dark consequences of their actions. Sanitation was abandoned;healthcare became a distant memory, and the people lived in poverty. Most orphans would be living in orphanages, but due to lack of funding, all of them have closed down. Abandoned children would roam the streets fending for themselves. One such child, Lightning, looked to be around 12 or 13 years old, but then again, matters such as age are trivial and aren’t worth keeping track of, so even Lightning herself didn’t know. However, that shouldn’t even come as a surprise as the poor of the city population, which is around 99% of the people, all spend their time scrounging in the dumpsters hoping for scraps of food. Lightning was no exception and she found other human beings boring and useless. Lightning(thinking): Friends, hmph, whoever had such a notion? Useless, just useless, if it doesn’t get you something in this world, it’s useless. A friend is just someone to eat your food and talk to you, but who, but the rich, even has the time to talk? There is just no need for a luxury like a friend, though, I’m not even sure you could consider it a luxury. Narrator: (sigh) Alas, that had been Lightning’s philosophy for as long as she could remember, and Lightning wasn’t seeing fit to change it anytime soon. Of course, she wasn’t exactly expecting a fellow child to show up and need her help. The poor girl was a recently abandoned 6-year-old and unfortunately she was just beaten up by some extremely territorial orphans. She needed help and fast or it else it wasn’t likely she would recover and even if she did, she would need help finding food. Lightning(thinking): Look, another child who isn’t street smart and got herself injured. Oh, well, too bad for her, though, she does look very young and I guess she doesn’t deserve this kind of treatment. No, I can’t feel sorry for her. The world is a cruel place and that is that. Hmm, I can’t just leave her lying there like that, and I guess I do have a little spare food. It’ll spoil in time by itself anyways, so I guess I could share it with her. [Lightning drags the girl to the abandoned building she’d claimed as her home. It was rickety and not a pretty sight. There were hardly any whole windows left, and what once was bright red brick was now a dull brown. Wooden boards were nailed up on some of the higher levels. A creaky shutter whistled in the wind. Lightning opens her wooden cupboards with many holes in them. The cupboards have cobwebs and dust. There is only a small, opened can of soup, and a tiny plate of beans. Lightning feeds them both to Hope. Lightning drags the Hope upstairs to Lightning’s small, cramped, squalid room and lays Hope in her bed and tucks Hope in with a ratty, blue blanket. Hope comes to in the morning. Fuzzy image as Hope blinks open her eyes again. ] Hope: Where am I? What happened? [Hope looks up and sees Lightning.] Hope: Who are you? Lightning: You should rest and not ask too many questions. My name is Lightning. [Lightning gets up and leaves, but she leaves a cleanly broken half of a ham and Swiss cheese sandwich for Hope] Narrator: Steel-hearted Lightning was willing to help others in dire need, but snuggling up to them wasn’t part of her description of “help.” It will take a while for Lightning to warm up to the girl, if she does so at all. Hope (thinking): I wonder why Lightning helped me like that, and what did she do to me? Where did she get this sandwich anyway? [Hope sits up and picks up the sandwich. She tentatively sniffs the sandwich, and takes a small nibble out of one of the corners. She starts taking bigger bites, and soon, the sandwich is gone. Hope lies down again and starts questioning again.] Narrator: While Hope was busy putting together her questions for Lightning and contemplating Hope’s situation, Lightning was briskly walking down the streets of the city, scrounging for food, but that wasn’t the only thing the girl was doing. Lightning had gone against her own philosophy, so she was in a slight emotional turmoil about what to do next. Lightning(thinking): What should I do now? I can’t and won’t feed her forever. Then again, she’s too young to live on the streets by herself. But I can’t just have her be a parasite and eat all my food;as much as I care for that little girl, I can’t exactly let myself starve, but I can’t let her starve either. Oh, what should I do? It’s all so confusing! [Lightning sits down on a nearby rusty, metal bench.] Lightning(thinking): Breathe slow, calming breaths. Hmm, what can I do that will benefit us both? Let’s see, I could teach her how to forage for food. Yes, that’s what I’ll do. With knowledge, that little girl could survive on her own, and she could help find food, too, then. [Lightning smiles and walks briskly home to tell her idea to Hope.] Lightning(still smiling): I have a proposition for you. [Screen blacks out.] Act II: SacrificeScene I: The Name [Screen fades back in. Lightning and Hope are rummaging around in the dirty dumpsters looking for food. It is unsanitary with discarded banana peels, apple cores, and other people’s leftovers scattered about, but this is as clean as it gets for orphans.] Lightning(rummaging): So, if we’re going to live together, you’re going to need a name. [Hope stops rummaging momentarily. Lightning does the same. Hope looks up curiously.] Hope: What kind of a name? Lightning: I was thinking Hope because you’re very hopeful, and you’re starting to get me hopeful, too, now. What do you say? Hope(smiling): I say it’s perfect! [Hope jumps up and hugs Lightning, with Lightning returning the embrace. They hug for 30 seconds, then, they get back to foraging. Screen blacks out.] Scene II: The Choice [Screen fades back in to Lightning’s horrified expression. Hope is lying on the bed and whimpering pitifully.] Narrator: Unfortunately, this is the consequence for those who eat unsanitized food. Hope has a very severe case of an intestinal disease. She vomits any food or liquid given to her and she has diarrhea once every five minutes. Her condition is very grave, and she will not survive without medicine, but the only ones with medicine are the filthy rich of this city, who can afford the private production of medicine, but they aren’t into sharing. If Lightning wants to get medicine for Hope, she will have to break into the mansions of the rich and steal it, but if she is caught, she will be forced to be a slave to the rich. Lightning has a tough choice between saving Hope’s life and risking her own freedom. What will she choose? Lightning(thinking): What am I to do? I might be a slave forever if I go, but if I don’t, Hope is going to die. It’s my freedom or Hope’s life. Ohh, what should I do? [Lightning glances at Hope whimpering in pain and Hope’s face is distorted in agony.] Lightning(thinking, resolutely): I’m going. Hope’s life is more important. Even as a slave, I’ll still live, and it’s only a chance. A very big chance, but still just a chance. Besides, even it wasn’t Hope is more important. Tonight, I leave. [Screen blacks out.] Scene III: The Exciting Terrifying Part [Screen fades back in. Lightning is standing just outside the door of her hideout. She looks up at the night sky and takes what could be her last breath of fresh air. Then, she runs to a glittering, golden mansion in the distance.] Lightning(thinking): Here goes nothing. It’s now or never. [Lightning sneaks around the side of the building to the back where there are no guards. A servant emptying the trash spots her.] Servant(male): Intruder! [The guards are on her in an instant. She runs.] Guard(male): You there, halt! [Lightning runs and runs and runs. She sees the guards get into their cars. They roll after her. She uses evasive maneuvers and hides in a storage shed. Panting, she catches her breath and knocks over a bottle. She lights a candle and sees that the label reads “Stomach Medicine.” She picks up the bottle, silently slides into her pocket, and smiles. She peeks out the door of the shed and seeing that the guards are looking the other way, dashes away and back into her hideout. She feeds Hope the medicine. Again, Hope comes to in the morning.] Hope: Lightning? Lightning: You’re awake! I was worried for you! You were so sick! [The two embrace each other again.] Hope: Why did you do it for me, Lightning? You risked your own freedom. Lightning: How did you know about that?Hope: I was partially conscious. Now, back to the question. Why did you do it? Lightning(smiling): Because you’re my friend, and friends help each other. [Screen blacks out.] Act III: LoyaltyScene I: The Capture [Screen fades back in.] Hope(screaming): Ahh! Lightning(at much the same time): Let us go! [Hooded men have captured the two friends. The two girls’ hands and feet are bound together with thick, coarse rope and gags are placed on them immediately after Lightning’s demand. They are also blindfolded. The men drag them away to an unknown place.] [Screen fades out.] Scene II: The Offer [Screen fades back in. We momentarily see the world through Lightning’s eyes, literally. We see it from her perspective. They have been dragged to an underground sewer system where the hooded men show their poor prizes to their boss, a man dressed in an elegant suit.] Lightning(threateningly): What do you want with us? Boss: My, my, you’re quick to get the point aren’t you? I have nothing to discuss with you. (To his henchmen) Take her away! Hope(frightened): No! Please! We didn’t do anything to you! Let me and my friend go! Boss: I’m afraid you probably won’t be seeing her again, but we have some other news to talk about. How would you like to join us? We would train you and feed you. Now, how does that sound? [The men undo her ropes in the hope of getting Hope’s trust.] Hope: No! [Hope runs quickly, a trait she picked up from Lightning, and using her guard’s surprise, Lightning breaks free. While Hope bites the captors and stomps on their feet, Lightning punches them into unconsciousness. They run back to their hideout.] Lightning(panting): You know, I wouldn’t have bla med you if you joined them instead. You should get the best start in life you can. Hope: I know, but you were so caring and kind to me. I couldn’t just betray you. Lightning(smiling): It’s good to know I have such a loyal friend. [Both girls smile at each other as the screen blacks out for the last time before the credits.] [Credits]